From spinning milkshakes to owning multiple McDonald’s locations: Rory MacKinnon retires after 52 years

July 9, 2026 · 0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

What began as a quest for a kid to earn some pocket money for an overseas bagpipe competition turned into a lifelong successful career in the restaurant business for a local businessman.

After a 52-year-long tenure with McDonald’s, well-known local restaurant owner Rory MacKinnon is retiring – at least from the food business.

Rory’s retirement is more of a change of direction. He won’t be sitting in a rocking chair on the front porch, as he plans to stay active and busy in the community.

While thousands of people have a job at McDonald’s listed on their resumé, most leave to pursue other options. However, for Rory, his first job at the restaurant at the milkshake station set him on a trajectory for bigger things with the company.

He was living in Ottawa as a youth when his pipe band won a North American championship and had the opportunity to travel to Scotland to compete.

“I came home and told my parents, ‘We’re going to go to Scotland this summer’,” Rory explained. “They said, ‘You’re going to need a job.’ They told me there was a new McDonald’s opening down the street and told me to go there and apply for a job.”

Rory followed his parents’ advice and rode his bike to the newly opened McDonald’s, where he landed his first job.

That was June 17, 1974.

Rory impressed the hiring manager with his honesty and enthusiasm, and the manager hired him on the spot. That same night, he was learning how to make milkshakes.

“That was my first and only job interview,” Rory said.

He stuck with the job and worked at the location throughout school. Upon graduating from university, he was offered a job as a restaurant manager, eventually managing seven McDonald’s locations in Ottawa.

From there, his career at McDonald’s took him through various corporate roles over the years, including opening the Skydome McDonald’s in Toronto.

Eventually, Rory was offered the Alliston franchise and took over the restaurant in 2004.

It’s a big deal to open a new McDonald’s franchise. The company has many requirements that must be met to ensure its success.

The opportunity reflected McDonald’s confidence in MacKinnon’s ability to operate a successful franchise.

Over the next several years, Rory expanded his McDonald’s ownership, taking over the Angus restaurant and opening a new location at the Alliston Walmart. He later added restaurants in Caledon, west-end Orangeville and at the Orangeville Walmart, followed by locations in Schomberg in 2016 and Shelburne in 2022.

Through the years, Rory’s restaurants provided first jobs and valuable work experience for thousands of people across the region. Many employees learned important lessons about teamwork, responsibility and the workplace during their time at McDonald’s.

Rory said that having several locations was made much easier with the help of his dedicated staff.

“You can do it if you have a good team,” he explained.

Now that he is retiring, the business will remain in the family. Rory’s son Tom has taken over the Alliston and Angus locations.

“What I am most proud of is my son taking over the locations and continuing with this legacy,” Rory said.

Now that he is in retirement, Rory’s goals have changed. He was asked to serve as a director on the Stevenson Memorial Hospital Foundation board and will bring over five decades of business experience to the role.

Rory will also continue as a lone piper with his band, the Clans of Tecumseth Pipes and Drums, at various local events.

What started as a teenager’s attempt to earn money for a trip to Scotland became a 52-year journey that shaped Rory’s career and left a lasting mark on the region.